I'm planning a trip to Portland, Seattle and Vancouver for the third week of January and would love some tips on food places to visit! I won't be able to dine out all that much, but if you know of interesting food markets to visit please let me know (though not too expensive eatery suggestions are welcome too!). So far Pike's Place in Seattle is the only place on my list, though I don't know much about it. Sadly the farmer's markets won't be open this time of year, as visiting them is my favorite way to be a tourist.

I'm new to these forums, but have enjoyed reading all of your discussions over the last few weeks.

In Vancouver (I'm assuming BC not Washington), you have to go to the Granville Island Market. Lovely seafood, produce, butcher, bakery, deli and "exotic" ingredient stalls as well as crafts and restaurants. It's open year round - 7 days a week. Not quite a farmer's market, but really worth the visit. The rest of Granville island is worth exploring as well. A bit touristy, but there are very nice art shops, a brewery etc.

How long are you in each location? Business or pleasure?_________________Approach love and cooking with reckless abandon. - The Dalai Lama

Joined: 18 Oct 2004Posts: 1654Location: Within view of Elliot Bay, The Olympics and every ship in the Sound

Posted: Mon Jan 09, 2006 10:14 pm Post subject:

Try to get to Pike Place way early, that way you can actually see what is in the stalls. La Panier is a wonderful pastry shop, in Pike Place but across from that main market. Again get there early so you can get a seat.
DeLaurentis is one of my favorite stores of all time, the meats, cheeses, wine, beer, everything is wonderful! Oh I forgot the bread, they have great bread. Market Spice is wonderful too, you must buy a box of their tea it is the best. There is a wonderful water color artist is the Market by DeLaurentis, the owner/artist is named Sarah Clementson. If you want a souvenir that isn't totally cheese visit her, she's a really nice woman.
Etta's Seafood is great and located on the same street as the market, just head north on the opposite side of the street. Don't bother with Cutter's it isn't even worth it.
On Sunday's there is the Market up in Fremont which is always fun. There is always an ecclectic mix of antique, handmade and edible. Fremont is a wonderful area of town, as ecclectic as the market. The Longshoreman's Daughter is a good restaurant and Costa's is a good fun Greek restaurant both in the area. If you have time see if anything is playing at the Empty Space Theater, they are an awesome company.
Head up the hill to Wallingford where two of my favorite places in SEattle are, The Mandalay Cafe and Bizzaro. Mandalay is an AMAZING curry house with a wonderful wine selection. Bizzaro is INSANE with wonderful Italian food, there is usually a woman working who dresses up in costume and sings crazy songs. I love it. Mandalay is on 45th Ave and Bizzaro is on 46th Ave and Stone Way. Right by Mandalay is the best freaking Mexican restaurant I have ever been to, nut I can't remember the name. It is located right by Mandalay in an old house. The decor leaves something to be desired but these people know how to make Mexican food.
I have more info on Seattle, I will post later!_________________"It's watery....and yet there's a smack of ham."

Thanks for the tips! The Granville Island Market sounds great, and I'll be sure to arrive at Pike's Place early, with camera, wallet and book in hand!

The main purpose of my visit is to check out the University of British Columbia, where I've applied to graduate school. I'm also going to tack on visits to friends in Portland (only one night) and Seattle (only two nights). I've never been to the northwest before (I live in Berkeley/Albany, California), so I'm considering this a quick introduction hopefully to be followed by longer explorations!

Isn't there some kind of special spice place at Pike's Place as well? I'd like to start grinding my own as much as possible, and they'd be small enough I could buy some to bring home with me.

The place to eat in Seattle is Salumi. I would even go so far as to say you should re-arrange your trip if you happen to have scheduled yourself there on a day that Salumi is not open. Their hours are limited (Tu - Fri, 11am - 4pm). Salumi's specialty is artisan cured meats but they are also dedicated to the preservation and promotion of handmade food traditions from Italy and the Mediterranean. When I was there we tried a bowl of pumpkin soup, a meatball sandwich, a polpatone sandwich, grilled Spanish cheese (can't remember the kind) topped with a beautiful thin slice of culatello (something similar to proscuitto) drizzled with honey. On a previous visit I had this amazing combination in sandwich form: goat cheese, fig confit and proscuitto - god that was good! Salumi is very much a family run place, owned by the father of Mario Batalli. The place and foods are so charming and delicious I can NOT imagine a visit to Seattle without a few delightful meals from this place. http://www.salumicuredmeats.com/

Also in Seattle: My good friend Lisa gave me a present of Extra Dark Chocolate Sauce from Fran's Chocolates. It was so good it didn't make it home to Los Angeles. University Village, 2626 NE University Vlg. St., Seattle, WA 98105, 206.528.9969

In Portland: I have had excellent meals at Tabla (NE 28th St), pretty decent Cuban food at Pambiche (NE Glisen), great brunch at Zells (1300 SE Morrison), I have heard fantastic things about Pix Patisserie, but didn't get a chance to go.

Check out www.seattlebonvivant.com
In Seattle:Top pot donuts is fun it's about a 5 block walk east from the market.
Visit Ten Zing Momo herb shop at the market. Also at the Pike Place Market eat breakfast on the top floor of Lowel's not for the food but the view is the best! Then for lunch just snack on all the different goodies you can find in the food stalls. Or go down to Chinatown for Seattle style(not your neighbors) dim sum at King Cafe. I will send you a personal e-mail with a list of when certain museums are free. The Frye is always free and well worth a trip up about a mile from Downtown Seattle, it has a nice little cafe.

When driving from Seattle to Vancouver (or the other directions), about an hour north of Seattle is the town of La Conner. While there, don't miss the Cascade Candy Company. We were bowled over the first time we visited, and have ordered from them both online and over the phone. Very nice people there, and wonnnnderrrfuullll chocolate. Here's a link if you need directions.

Hi,
There's a great spice outlet right in the market called Market Spice. Try the Market Spice Tea, it's fabulous.
Down the street from there is a wonderful cookware store called Sur La Table.
I love to have breakfast at a little European style cafe, Le Pichet, just up the hill from Sur La Table- great capuccinos and baguettes, brioche etc. with homemade jam.
In La Connar try the La Connar Brew House - the Thai Chicken pizza is good if you like spicy food and my husband highly recommeds the pilsner they brew there. The Calico Cupboard is good too.
All the best at UBC._________________BJ

My friends live in Vancouver and I visit the Granville Island market everytime. The best way to get there is to take one of the little tiny ferries. It's not truly an island but is still would be harder to get to in a car. They have lots of produce, but also other foodstuffs, including one dedicated only to different types of stock and broth, plus reasonably priced places to eat of various ethnic persuasions (eastern european, asian, and so on).

Joined: 18 Oct 2004Posts: 1654Location: Within view of Elliot Bay, The Olympics and every ship in the Sound

Posted: Tue Jan 10, 2006 6:00 pm Post subject:

It is a pain to find parking on Granville Island, but if you drive you can hop on over to Kitsalano a fun, hip little neighborhood nearby.

In Portland there are some awesome restaurants just head to the Pearl district and choose. 23rd has some great places too, then hop over to 21st to a great little coffee shop called Coffee Time, it's such a cool place. The Gypsy Lounge is great for martini's. Ooooooooh, check out the Kennedy School! It is an old high school converted into several different bars and the auditorium is a theater/bar. It is a quiet place where you can find a dark corner and sip the best lemon drop in the city. I forgot the address but seriously try to find it, it rocks. I love Portland. I almost forgot about The Lucky Labrador, such a fun place. Gather for a pint of awesome micro brew and to check out all the dogs!

In Seattle you should also check out Capitol Hill, a fun ecclectic neighborhood I happen to love. For Spanish food, The Harvest Vine, Soul Food, the Kingfish Cafe, there is just too much I need to get a grip.

Have fun!_________________"It's watery....and yet there's a smack of ham."

UBC has a beautiful campus, if you can get accomodation there, it will give you a chance to explore. Hotels in Vancouver tend to be pretty expensive. The campus is removed from the rest of the city, but the transit is pretty good. I spent 4 days at UBC when I was in High School, and wanted to live here ever since. I've been in the city a bit more than a year now, so it only took 17 years to realize my dream.

Some other things to do and see in Vancouver; Chinatown, Grouse Mountain (great for getting the lay of the land - cheap if you're fit enough to climb up), Kitsalano and the shopping districts along 4th and 10th which will likely be your stomping grounds if you do move here.

What will you be studying?_________________Approach love and cooking with reckless abandon. - The Dalai Lama

Thanks for all the great tips! I wish I was staying longer so I could explore them all, but I'll just have to get back up there again. Next time I also want to get out of the cities to explore the mountains and hot-springs... mmm....

FoodSciGeeek, I'm glad to hear you've loved Vancouver. I applied to the program in Community and Regional Planning. I also hope to check out the food/agriculture and various other resource management departments to see if I could take classes there as well. I'm looking into B&B's in Kitsalano so I'm glad to hear it is a nice neighborhood. It looks like I can find cheaper rates than the on-campus rooms for visitors, and since that leg of my trip will be alone I think I'll appreciate the more personal environment as well.